


The fantastic adventures of Takeru Takaishi

by koukacs



Category: Digimon - All Media Types, Digimon Adventure, Digimon Adventure Zero Two | Digimon Adventure 02
Genre: AU, Multi, there might be other ships down the road, there's a character that dies all the time and then comes back to life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-04
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:20:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,568
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27389344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/koukacs/pseuds/koukacs
Summary: Takeru Takaishi, the handsome intellectual and most promising aspiring writer of the year 1892 after the ascension of the Goddess, leaves the Old Continent and the sophisticated ways of the heart of the Empire behind and goes back to Turtle Island, where his brother takes care of a farm. Seeking inspiration to write the soon-to-be greatest novel of all time, he never expected to run into revolutionaries plotting against the world order. Above everything, he never expected to meet an actual demon from Hell! However, he can't deny that his story will be a lot more interesting than he had imagined before! {AU}
Relationships: Ishida Yamato | Matt Ishida/Takenouchi Sora
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	1. The demon

**Author's Note:**

> Digimon doesn't belong to me. This is a story written just for fun. If you enjoy fantastic AUs, you could like it.

**Chapter 1: The demon**

The ship that had brought him from the Old Continent had taken nearly two months to complete the journey to Turtle Island, as expected. Takeru had sent letters to his brother, asking Yamato to wait for him at the port, but he didn't show up. With no other option, Takeru requested a cab to take him to Ishida Farm. However, nobody paid him attention.

Or almost nobody.

A young lady with orange hair and reddish eyes offered him a ride on her cart, which was attached to a beautiful brown horse. Takeru found amusing how that woman was wearing pants, boots and a large yellow shirt. Back in the Old Continent, he had never seen a lady wearing something other than long puffy dresses or, at least, long rounded skirts with buttoned shirts. The fashion of the colonies should be different.

“My name is Sora. Nice to meet you!” She greeted while helping him to put the luggage on the cart. “You're not from around here, are you? I mean... your clothes...”

“Oh, yeah! I bet you don't see high fashion from the Old Continent every day!” Takeru exclaimed. He could only imagine how much of an effect his lustrous black boots and the linen suit he was wearing could have on people who had never experimented the finest things in the world. As courtesy, he posed to her, letting Sora admire his elegant form for as long as she desired. Takeru even tipped his fedora, knowing how much that act increased his natural charm.

“So... are you coming to the cart or...?” Sora asked. Shockingly, she didn't seem too impressed by him.

“Yes, of course! I need to go to Ishida Farm! My name is Takeru Takaishi, by the way!” Takeru said, trying to get on the cart. He failed on the task, which made Sora help him.

“You have quite strong arms for a lady,” Takeru praised, after being pulled into the vehicle.

“Thanks. But, to be honest, you happen to be very light.”

Takeru blushed.

“Well, you see, I weight as much as any other man from the Old Continent. I'm also an intellectual, I don't really do labor work. But if you could measure my capabilities with a pen, I'm sure you would find them quite remarkable. You see, I'm about to write the greatest novel of the century, ought to become a classic. Therefore, I came to the bucolic environment of my infancy to seek the right inspiration.”

“The way you speak is so cute!” Sora giggled. “From what I understood, you're an aspiring writer and you're here to be inspired by your family's farm. Oh, wait! Yamato has told me about his little brother and his mother living in the Old Continent! It's you, isn't it?”

“Oh, so my brother has talked about me?” Takeru was surprised.

“He talks about you all the time!” Sora told him. “Yamato showed me some of your letters, with your short stories.”

“I can't imagine my brother showing personal letters to anyone. Since he was a kid, he has always been the broody, solitary type,” Takeru commented. “He would have to be really close to someone to do that...”

Takeru observed Sora's cheeks getting pink and knew there was something up. However, Yamato's personal relationships weren't his most pressing concern, despite how amusing it would be to tease his brother about them.

“Why didn't Yamato come to pick me up?”

“That is strange,” Sora said in a concerned voice. “Something must've happened!”

In about 30 minutes, they arrived at the farm. It seemed smaller and dirtier than Takeru remembered from his childhood. The wooden house behind the vegetable garden was old and in need of repairs on the roof. Standing on the porch, there was a blond and bearded young man pointing a shotgun to the front door. It took a couple of minutes for Takeru to realize that the tall and muscular individual was his big brother.

“Yamato! What's the matter?” Sora asked, jumping from the cart and running towards him. Yamato immediately turned to her, while putting the shotgun down.

“Sora, you have to go away, it's dangerous!” Yamato told her.

“If you're in danger, then I must stay by your side!” Sora stated, pulling a knife from her belt, which had been hidden by her shirt.

“YOU WERE CARRYING A KNIFE WITH YOU THIS WHOLE TIME?!” Takeru shouted, getting out of the cart. Yamato and Sora stared at him.

“Takeru?” Yamato muttered as his eyes shone with tears. “Is that really you?”

“Yes, it is I, Takeru Takaishi!” Takeru announced. “The brother you haven't seen in person for more than 12 years and, yet, you forgot to pick up upon his arrival!”

“I didn't forget to pick you up, something more urgent happened,” Yamato told him.

“What could possibly be more important than picking me up?” Takeru asked.

Yamato pointed to the vegetable garden, where a hole was visible among the carrots, some of which lay on the soil.

“I was tending the carrots when a demon crawled out of the dirt,” Yamato told the others. “A horrible creature that seemed to be made of mud itself... it's inside the house now!”

“A demon?!” Sora gasped.

“Demons don't actually exist!” Takeru stated.

“I know what I saw!” Yamato raised his voice. “A creature from Hell came out of the soil, stared at me with eyes as dark as the night and told me, in a horrifying hoarse voice... 'could you please let me use your bathroom and lend me some spare clothes?'”

Sora and Takeru exchanged confused looks.

“I didn't know demons could be so polite...” Takeru murmured, muffling a smirk.

“Then, you actually let the demon use your bathroom and wear your clothes?” Sora asked, raising an eyebrow.

“What was I supposed to do? Say no to that abomination from Hell? It could've cursed me!” Yamato said, anxiously holding one of his suspenders.

“I actually think it was a good idea to be kind to the demon,” Sora told him, showing Yamato a reassuring smile. “Having a supernatural creature owning you a favor could be good for our cause.”

“Cause? What cause?” Takeru asked. “What are you talking about?”

“Ehhrrrr... n-never mind that!” Sora stuttered, exchanging nervous looks with Yamato.

 _These two are hiding something from me!_ Takeru thought. _Something other than their budding romance!_

Suddenly, the knob on the front door began to move. Yamato, once again, pointed the shotgun at the door. Sora had her knife at hand. Takeru didn't know what to do, therefore he stood behind to give moral support if necessary.

As an intellectual, Takeru shouldn't believe in demons. However, he knew his brother wouldn't make up such a story. Besides, a part of him found the possibility of encountering a supernatural creature exciting. That could be what his soon-to-be-classic novel would be about! Fantasy tales were popular, after all! Better than writing boring stories about a farm! An idea for the title emerged in his head: The fantastic adventures of Takeru Takaishi!

Once the door was open, the creature at the other side did not live up to the expectations Yamato had created. The so-called demon was a young man with red hair, thick eyebrows and black eyes wearing identical brown pants, white shirt and suspenders to the ones Yamato had, with the difference that those clothes were clearly too large for the stranger.

“Thank you so much, Mr. Yamato! Now that I've cleaned myself, I feel actually alive again!” The young man said, slightly bowing to Yamato.

“I'm a bit confused...” Sora whispered in Yamato's ear, “is the demon possessing him?”

“I'm not a demon,” the other corrected, looking into the young woman's eyes. “People might call me that, but that's not what I am. My name is Koushiro. It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Sora!”

“How do you know her name, demon?” Yamato inquired, making the shotgun almost touch Koushiro's face. “Are you planning something wicked involving her? If you even think on touching a single hair of Sora's head, I will send you back to Hell myself!”

“Again, I'm not a demon, my name is Koushiro,” the other said, taking a step back. “I learned her name the same way I learned yours. You could think of it as a kind of special power I have.”

“A demonic power! I knew it!” Yamato nearly yelled.

“Yamato, please, stop bothering him,” Sora requested. “Koushiro keeps saying he's not a demon. Stop calling him that.”

“Yes, big brother, stop it!” Takeru said. “There are more important matters we have to discuss, such as...” he got closer to Koushiro “how long were you buried in the soil? Why were you there? How did you survive?”

“How long... well... what year is this?” Koushiro asked.

“The year of 1892 after the ascension of the Goddess,” Takeru replied.

“Then, that means that I stayed buried for 52 years,” Koushiro said.

“52 years?! You don't look like you're more than 20 years old!” Sora was astonished.

“Oh, I'm way older than that, actually,” Koushiro told her.

“Are you saying that you're immortal?” Takeru inquired. “Is that how you stayed alive all this time under the vegetable garden?”

“I wasn't alive,” Koushiro explained. “I was shot to death 52 years ago and then my corpse was buried. I only came back to life today and had to dig my way out of the soil. By the way, sorry if I startled you, Mr. Yamato.”

“There was a corpse under my vegetable garden... for 52 years...?” Yamato muttered, terrified. “And then you just... came back to life...?”

“With the due respect, Koushiro, you don't seem too shaken for someone who just resurrected,” Takeru commented. “That's especially odd, considering that I've never heard of anyone coming back to life in the history of the world.”

“I've been dying and coming back to life for a really long time now,” Koushiro told him. “Honestly, this last death wasn't as bad compared to the other ones I had.”

“Are you telling me that you've had many horrifying deaths? That's fascinating! Tell me everything!” Takeru asked. “Your life sounds like an exciting horror story! Yes! I shall call the first chapter of my book 'The demon!'”

“I thought we had agreed not to call him that anymore,” Sora commented.

“Maybe we could discuss that later, Mr. Takeru,” Koushiro said, turning his attention to Sora. “There's something more important right now. Miss Sora, your mother and allies are in grave danger. Yamanaka's forces are preparing to ambush their camp this night.”

“What?!” Sora and Yamato said at the same time.

“Yamanaka? Isn't that the name of the Lord appointed by the Emperor himself to guard Turtle Island?” Takeru questioned. “Why would such a remarkable person ambush anyone?”

“Hey, Takeru, don't defend that guy!” Yamato scolded his brother. “Old man Yamanaka has been exploiting the poor people of this island for decades! We've been fighting against his oppression!”

“W-Wait a second...” Takeru was getting increasingly nervous, “i-if you're opposing someone appointed by the Emperor, doesn't that mean you're opposing the Emperor...? If you're opposing the Emperor, that makes you...”

Sora exchanged a long look with Yamato. Then, she approached Takeru and gently touched his shoulder. She showed him a warm smile and let him know:

“We're called many terrible things by the Empire, but what we call ourselves is revolutionaries.”

“My own big brother... a subversive... a traitor to the Empire...” Takeru murmured, “it can't be! I can never accept this!”

“Takeru, you have to understand!” Yamato tried to reach him. “You were raised in privilege, so you don't know, but there are countless people around the world suffering because of the Empire! We're fighting to help those people!”

“My mother and I don't always agree on things...” Sora muttered, looking down, “but she's fighting for the sake of the oppressed! I can't let her and the others get ambushed! We must go and help them!”

“Y-You can't expect me to simply cast aside everything I've learned to this day to follow you into a revolutionary camp!” Takeru stated.

Koushiro approached Takeru and told him:

“You know? Once the revolution is victorious and the Empire falls, I bet many people would like to read a book about how it all happened. The author of such a book would be famous in the entire planet.”

“Hey! Leave my brother alone, demon!” Yamato hissed. “Takeru needs time to adjust his whole understanding of the world!”

“I see... I see... I can see it all now!” Takeru exclaimed. “An oppressive regimen, dashing heroes and their love story, the unlikely contribution of an actual demon! Oh! Everybody is going to want to read a book with all these elements! Let's go to the revolutionary camp, at once! Off to chapter 2: Daughter of the revolution!”

“Daughter? Wait, is that going to be about me?” Sora asked.

“What was that talk about love story? Whose love story is that?” Yamato inquired, blushing.

“How many times will I have to tell you that I'm not a demon?” Koushiro questioned.

While Sora prepared her horse, Yamato led Takeru and Koushiro to the stable to get three more animals. As the sun hid behind a cloud, the sound of bells entered their ears. They knew that sound came from the chapel in the village.

Koushiro gazed at the hills on the horizon, thinking about the last encounter he had with _that_ _person_ , knowing that he was still around, waiting for him.


	2. Daughter of the revolution

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In order to save the revolutionaries, Sora must confront her mother and her past.

**Chapter 2: Daughter of the revolution**

On their way up the hill, Sora reminisced the times when her father took her to play hide-and-seek among the woods. She also remembered the day when she hid in a bush and overheard a group of men approaching Haruhiko. They accused him of having “subversive books” and spreading anti-government propaganda among the good people of Turtle Island. Sora was so scared that she couldn't move. She didn't do anything to stop her father from being taken away.

After her surroundings became quiet, Sora left her hiding spot and ran back to her house. It didn't take long for the little girl to notice smoke rising to the sky. Once she arrived there, she found her house burning.

Sora was about to scream in horror, but she felt a hand cover her mouth and another pull her back to the woods.

_“I'm so glad you're safe! I'm so glad!”_

Sora recognized her mother's voice. The arms that once restricted her were now hugging the child. The little girl was trembling and it didn't take her long to begin to cry. Toshiko turned her daughter around, so she could face her. The woman's eyes were red; a couple of tear trails were still visible.

 _“They took Dad! They took him away!”_ Sora said, among sobs.

 _“I know,”_ Toshiko muttered.

 _“Where did they take him?”_ Sora asked.

New tears formed in the woman's eyes. She didn't say anything. It would take years for Sora to learn that her father was taken by Yamanaka's henchmen and dragged to the living room of her family's house as a way to lure Toshiko and the other revolutionaries to a trap. The henchmen were all armed and largely outnumbered the revolutionaries. It would be a suicide mission to try to rescue Hahuriko. Therefore, their leader decided they shouldn't do it.

Toshiko and the rest of the group survived.

Haruhiko didn't.

For the rest of her life, Sora wished to get justice for her father and revenge against Yamanaka. She cooperated with the revolutionaries but, despite knowing their reasons and understanding that her father wouldn't have wanted to be the cause of their demise, Sora could never forgive the leader of the group for that decision.

* * *

Takeru wasn't fond of the silence filling the air as they climbed the hill on the horses. Sora was leading the way, Koushiro and he were in the middle and Yamato was on the back, protecting them. From the way Yamato kept staring at Koushiro's back, Takeru assumed he still considered the stranger a threat.

Since Koushiro was the one closest to him, Takeru decided to start a conversation with that man.

“Tell me, Koushiro, where are you from?”

“I was born on Shrimp Island and lived there until I was 10 years old,” Koushiro replied, not looking at Takeru.

“That's pretty close to Turtle Island!” Takeru exclaimed. “I'm not sure why, but you had given me the impression of being from somewhere far away.”

“I've travelled all around the world,” Koushiro told him. “But I always end up coming back to this place. I like to visit the spot where my parents' house used to be... well, not properly my parents'... the house of the couple who took care of me after...”

Koushiro stopped talking. A sad expression was visible on his face.

Suddenly, Sora stopped her horse and raised one hand, as if giving a signal. Two people carrying shotguns came from both sides of the trail: a woman with purple hair and glasses and a man with spiky dark pink hair. At least, that's what Takeru assumed his hair color to be. The woman had a red and long sleeved shirt over her brown paints; her hair was tied in a ponytail. The man had black pants and a loose blue shirt.

“Daisuke! Miyako! I need to talk to my mother immediately!” Sora told them.

“We're really sorry, Sora, but we can't let strangers into the camp. It's dangerous!” Daisuke said, pointing at Takeru and Koushiro.

“This is my little brother, his name is Takeru,” Yamato introduced his brother. “The one with red hair is likely a demon from Hell. You should tie him up.”

“A demon?!” Daisuke exclaimed, staring at Koushiro with amazement in his eyes. “Are you an actual demon from Hell? Can you summon Hellfire? Can you eat souls? Are you capable of seeing the future?”

“No, no, no... to tell you the truth, I'm capable of seeing fragments of the future,” Koushiro answered, “but that ability is not as useful as it sounds.”

“You're a clairvoyant?” Takeru asked, excitedly.

“That kind of thing doesn't exist! It's unscientific! Charlatanism!” Miyako affirmed.

“I'm not a charlatan!” Koushiro stated.

“Don't mind her, Mr. Demon,” Daisuke told Koushiro, “she's the local mad scientist and can get a bit carried away sometimes about science.”

“Stop shaming me for my love for science, Daisuke!” Miyako shouted. “It's the greatest thing in the world!”

“Enough with this discussion!” Sora raised her voice. “The camp is in great danger! Yamanaka's men are coming to attack us! I must talk to my mother immediately!”

Yamato looked at Sora's trembling body with concern. Despite wanting to comfort her, he knew that interrupting the woman would only make her upset. Meanwhile, Miyako and Daisuke stared at Sora in shock. They didn't remember ever seeing her lose her temper.

“That's not possible!” Miyako stated, after half a minute. “Yamanaka's men don't know where our camp is! They would never find our location, unless someone told them!”

“You can't mean that there's a traitor among us...” Daisuke said.

“I don't know how it's going to happen, but I saw armed men walking up this hill amidst darkness,” Koushiro told them. “That's why I warned Miss Sora.”

“Why exactly should we believe you, stranger?” Miyako asked. “As far as I can tell, you're nothing more than a charlatan trying to deceive people!”

Koushiro sighed, frustrated.

“Fine, don't believe me! I'm used to that,” he said. “Just tie me up already and drag me to the tent where you keep the weird looking mechanical box. I can't wait to see you yelling at the boy with green eyes and short black hair to stop meddling with your invention.”

“How do you know all that?” Miyako inquired. Then, a bigger concern took over her mind. “Hold on, Iori is doing what?!”

“I can't waste more time with this!” Sora snapped, making her horse run towards the top of the hill. Yamato followed her on his horse.

“How dramatic!” Takeru murmured to himself. He was about to follow them, but Daisuke pointed the shotgun at him.

“The two of you will have to get down from the horses and let us tie your hands and blindfold you,” he said.

“What? But I'm Yamato's brother!” Takeru protested. “Doesn't that make me trustworthy?”

“Well... you're not dressed as someone we could trust,” Daisuke told him.

“How dare you? I'm wearing the finest and most expensive clothes you've probably seen in your whole lives!” Takeru was getting exasperated.

“That's precisely the issue!” Miyako was getting angry as well. “Do you understand that we're revolutionaries and you look like someone wealthy?”

“So... does being a revolutionary make you hate people with good taste in clothes?” Takeru asked.

Miyako and Daisuke were left speechless after Takeru's remark, not quite understanding how someone could say something so stupid.

Koushiro got down from the horse and put his hands up. He glanced at Takeru and told him:

“Mr. Takeru, with the due respect, please stop saying things without thinking first.”

“W-What are you trying to say?” Takeru asked.

“I think he just called you out for saying something dumb... in a very polite way,” Daisuke told him.

Takeru's world was shaken by that affirmation. Dumb? Him? But he was such an educated person! But... what if he was dumb? Had he actually been dumb for his entire life? Did he live a lie for all those years? He felt as if his head was spinning and lost his balance, which made him fall from the horse. Luckily for Takeru, he fell on Koushiro.

Koushiro wasn't very lucky as he was knocked to the ground by Takeru's weight.

“Didn't see that coming, did you, Mr. Psychic Demon?” Miyako mocked.

After that, she and Daisuke proceeded to tie and blindfold the two strangers.

* * *

Once Sora arrived at the camp, she jumped from the horse and headed to her mother's tent with large steps. Some revolutionaries, who were sitting on logs and cleaning their weapons, seemed surprised at her sudden arrival, but didn't pay her too much attention.

Yamato arrived right after her. He quickly got down from his horse and ran in Sora's direction.

“Sora, please! What are you going to say to her?” Yamato inquired, putting himself in her front. “You can't expect Leader Toshiko to believe that a demon dug himself out of the dirt and told you about a vision he had! I mean... do we even have any actual reason to believe that guy, anyway?”

“I don't know if he's telling the truth or not, but we can't risk our people's safety!” Sora retorted. “I'm not going to let Yamanaka take anyone away again!”

“Sora, I understand-” Yamato began to say.

“No, you don't! Your whole family is alive, you can't understand!” Sora shouted, pushing him out of her way.

Astonished by her uncharacteristically rude behavior, Yamato was unable to move for a few seconds. Once he recovered, he made his way to the tent in the middle of the camp. Inside it, he found Sora staring down at her mother, who was tending to a flower arrangement on the ground, while kneeling on a pillow. There were several other flower arrangements in the tent, among maps, books and weapons. The woman was wearing dark pants and a white buttoned shirt that gave her an air of elegance.

“You haven't come to see me in a while, Sora. And now, without any warning, you interrupt me while I'm with the flowers...” Toshiko commented.

“There's something more important than your flowers that we must discuss!” Sora told her. “Old man Yamanaka's men are coming to the camp! We have to evacuate!”

Toshiko paled after hearing that. She stood up and approached her daughter. Sora felt uncomfortable under that intense gaze, but didn't look away.

“Who told you that?” Toshiko inquired.

“That's not important!” Sora said.

“The only way for those people to find our location is if there's a traitor among us, which is something I can't bring myself to believe,” Toshiko told her. “You'd better give me the source of that information if you expect me to take it seriously.”

Sora felt her eyes getting warm and her body trembling. She wasn't surprised that her mother didn't listen to her, but that still hurt.

“Then, you need a reliable source to act to protect the group?” Sora questioned. “If you really cared about anyone, the mere possibility of them being in danger should be enough!”

“Sora, don't disrespect me!” Toshiko scolded her. “I care very deeply about-”

“You didn't even care about Dad!” Sora accused, letting a couple of tears escape her eyes.

Toshiko was taken aback by that. Without uttering a word, she watched as Sora stormed out of the tent, being followed by Yamato. Only when she was alone, she allowed herself to cry, like she had always done ever since the day when she lost her husband.

Out of the tent, Sora stumbled on something and nearly fell. Yamato embraced her from behind just in time. He didn't tell her anything. Yamato knew when Sora needed his words and that wasn't one of those moments. She turned to him and wrapped the man in her arms, burying her face on his shoulder. Yamato kept a hand on her back and caressed her hair with another. He would let her cry as much as she needed.

* * *

While Sora and Yamato were with Toshiko, Takeru and Koushiro arrived at the camp, after being guided by Miyako while Daisuke led the horses. Once they arrived, the pieces of fabric covering their eyes were removed. Takeru wasn't impressed by the amount of twenty dirty tents or the small group of people wearing cheap clothes. But what did he know? He was an ignorant, after all! Maybe that was the highest fashion among the revolutionaries and he just wasn't intelligent enough to appreciate it!

“Iori Hida, you better come out at this second or may the Goddess help me!” Miyako called.

A teenager with greens eyes and black hair came out of one of the tents. He was carrying a large mechanical black box, which had several small gears moving on its sides.

“You really are meddling with my invention!” Miyako accused.

“It wasn't working properly,” Iori said. “I thought I could fix it if I took a better look-”

“Iori, you shouldn't touch other people's inventions without permission!” Miyako scolded him.

“It's not just your invention! I helped too!” Iori said.

“You just assisted me in the manufacture! I was the one who designed it and named it!” Miyako retorted.

“If it doesn't work, you didn't do a very good job, Miyako,” Daisuke remarked.

“Hey, you're the last person that can criticize the Smokenator, Daisuke! You've never invented anything in your life!” Miyako shouted. Then, she grabbed the box and tried to pull it from Iori's hands, but he didn't want to give it to her.

“Stop it! I haven't finished fixing the Night Bringer yet!” Iori said, refusing to let go of the box.

“Stop trying to rename the Smokenator!” Miyako said back, putting more force in her grip.

“I find both of those names silly...” Takeru murmured, “but I'm nothing more than an ignorant simpleton who knows nothing of the world!”

“Mr. Takeru, you don't have to say that about yourself. You're clever!” Koushiro tried to cheer him up.

“You were the one who called me dumb!” Takeru accused.

“I never said that!” Koushiro defended himself. “I simply advised you to think more before saying things. I can tell you by experience that offending the wrong person can lead to terrible consequences. I didn't want you to repeat my mistakes.”

“Your mistakes?” Takeru asked. “Are you saying that the reason why you die so much is that you keep saying dumb things to people?”

“I'm not going to deny that many of my deaths are tied to people not appreciating what I had to say... even if I was trying to help them...” Koushiro said in a sad tone. “But before all that, I offended someone very dangerous... in consequence I was cursed with the clairvoyance...”

“Cursed? But that's such a fascinating ability!” Takeru contested.

For a moment, it was as if the light had completely vanished from Koushiro's eyes, as if he had gotten lost in painful thoughts.

“It's not fascinating to see tragedies before they happen...” Koushiro had a cold tone, “it's not fascinating to try everything to stop those tragedies... to save people... and then watching them die anyway... unable to change anything...”

Takeru wasn't sure of what to think after their conversation took such a dark turn. Thankfully for him (but not for anyone else), the sudden eruption of black smoke from the mechanical box Miyako and Iori had been fighting over distracted him from the awkward situation Koushiro had created. The black smoke rose to the sky quickly and began to spread in high speed. Despite being the middle of the day, the darkness befalling them made it seem like night had arrived.

“Iori, what did you do?!” Miyako questioned, letting go of the box.

“Don't act as if I was the only one in fault for this!” Iori stood up for himself.

“The entire island is going to see this smoke!” Daisuke said. “Everybody is going to know our location now!”

“What's going on here?!” Yamato inquired, running in their direction alongside Sora. He saw Iori still holding the box from which the smoke was coming. “Iori, what did you do?!”

“Hey, don't criticize Iori!” Miyako defended the teenager. “A farmer like you can't understand the passion of a scientist!”

Sora hurried to untie Takeru and Koushiro. Right after that, she grabbed the red-haired young man by the shoulders and inquired:

“Is this the 'darkness' you saw? Are Yamanaka's men coming?”

“I think so...” Koushiro murmured.

“You think so?!” Yamato snapped. “Are you a clairvoyant or not?! Give us a straight answer! Tells us what will happen next!”

“I can only see fragments of the future!” Koushiro explained. “I can't control this ability!”

“Brother, leave him alone!” Takeru pleaded. “Koushiro is just trying to help! He might not know everything and not understand the intricacies of certain social rules or why some people don't appreciate fine clothes!”

“Is he still talking about Mr. Demon?” Daisuke wondered.

“But the point is that he's trying his best to help!” Takeru continued. “He might make mistakes and say dumb things sometimes, but he's trying to improve himself and do better! Isn't that worthy something?”

“I think I'm not understanding the context here,” Yamato said. “What on Earth happened after I went after Sora?”

“Sora, what happened here?” Toshiko questioned, running in her daughter's direction. “This smoke is giving away our location! The camp can be attacked! Yamanaka's henchmen outnumber us! They have better equipment and more munition! In our current state, we can't outfight them!”

For a moment, Sora wanted to say spiteful things to her mother. But the desperation on Toshiko's face made her hesitate. Her previous words of accusation towards Toshiko, fueled by the pain caused by the loss of her father, seemed cruel and stupid on retrospect. It couldn't be more evident that her mother had always worried about the safety of her people.

“We just need to make sure that everybody escape to the tunnels before they get here,” Sora said, letting go of Koushiro and turning to her mother. “Let's reunite our best shooters! I can lead the offensive and buy you enough time-”

“Sora, no!” Toshiko interrupted. “You have to escape too! I will stay back and fight them off!”

“Are you out of your mind?!” Sora questioned. “You'll die if you do that! I have to stay and help you!”

“This is an order, Sora! You'll leave!” Toshiko insisted.

“I'm not going to run!” Sora stated. “I'm not going to turn my back on other people and leave them to die!”

For the first time in many years, Sora saw tears in Toshiko's eyes.

“Back then, the thing that I wanted the most was to save Haruhiko or die trying. But I couldn't do that... and it wasn't just for the sake of the group...” Toshiko told her daughter. “If I had tried to save Haruhiko, both your father and I would've died. And then, you'd be left alone to fend for yourself... those horrible men wouldn't show mercy to a little kid... you might hate me for that decision, Sora. It's alright, I hate myself for it as well. But I don't regret choosing to protect you. I'll keep choosing you above everything and everyone, for as long as I live. So, please, don't throw your life away!”

Sora could feel her eyes getting flooded with tears. She almost didn't recognize the warmth and lightness taking over her heart. They were reminiscent of happier times, when her family was together. Those feelings made her realize that, despite respecting her mother's love for her, she still couldn't abandon the woman. Sora wasn't willing to lose the rest of her family.

“OH MY GODDESS!!!” Takeru suddenly shouted, startling everybody who was enthralled by the touching moment Sora and Toshiko were sharing. “I JUST HAD THE MOST AMAZING IDEA THAT IS GOING TO SAVE EVERYBODY! IT'S SUCH AN INTELLIGENT PLAN! I'M SO INTELLIGENT! HOW COULD I EVER THINK I WAS DUMB?!”

“Wait, did you seriously just come up with an idea that is going to save everybody?” Miyako asked in a skeptical tone.

“Yes, I did, Miss Mad Scientist!” Takeru interjected, pointing his finger dramatically towards the dark sky. “But before I begin to explain my brilliant plan, tell me, do you have any other interesting invention?”

“Oh! Are you asking me if I have other interesting inventions?” Miyako grinned. “I do! I really do! Just you wait to see them!”

“Now, you're sounding like an evil scientist, Miyako!” Daisuke commented.

“Be quiet, Daisuke!” Miyako retorted.

“Hey, Daisuke!” a young woman with light pink hair approached him. Several other revolutionaries were surrounding the group. “Care to explain what's going on to the rest of us?”

“Honestly, Jun, weren't you paying attention?” Daisuke asked.

“We have been paying attention!” another young woman, with short curly blond hair and glasses, said. “But we still need an explanation! We don't even know who that class traitor claiming to have a brilliant plan is!”

“Who are you calling a class traitor?!” Takeru inquired.

Koushiro found the discussion funny. It felt strange to laugh after such a long time, even if he was trying to muffle it. That heartwarming feeling, however, didn't last long.

He suddenly saw himself in a large living room. In front of him, there was an old skinny man looking through a large window. Through ot, the black smoke covering the hill was visible at the horizon.

“Tell me, Monk...” the old man spoke in a husky voice, “is it really wise to send all my forces after the revolutionaries?”

“I can protect you by myself, you have nothing to worry about.”

Koushiro knew that voice too well. In other times, nothing would make him happier than to listen to that person, especially when he was laughing. At that moment, however, all that voice did was to confirm his dreadful suspicions.

“What is a holy man like you doing on Turtle Island?” the old man inquired, turning to his right. There, the person in the monk clothes was leaning against a wall. He was smiling at the other, but that smile wasn't like the ones he used to show Koushiro. There was no shred of joy left on that face. The top of the monk's head was covered by a black hood, but Koushiro could still see some strings of that person's large brown hair coming out.

In those distant times, that person would never hide his hair.

“Well, you know...” the monk smirked, “nothing much... just waiting for an old friend.”

His sight began to turn dark, indicating that the vision was ending. Koushiro was once again in the revolutionary camp. Takeru was still discussing something with the revolutionaries, but Koushiro wasn't paying attention anymore. His mind wandered through memories of their last meetings, which all ended with his best friend asking him the same thing:

_“Please, stay dead this time.”_


	3. Takeru's amazing (ruined) plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Takeru’s marvelous plan to save the revolutionaries doesn’t work quite as predicted and one Ken Ichijouji steals his thunder when it comes to speeches.

**Chapter 3: Takeru's amazing (ruined) plan**

When Osamu told his little brother to stop working on the pepper field to join the henchmen, Ken was hesitant, but couldn't think on a good excuse to decline. It was too exhaustive to work 18 hours per day, seven days per week, on one of Yamanaka's farms, after all. And the payment of 50 cents of royale per hour was far from being enough to buy food and other necessary things from the shops controlled by Yamanaka. Since most of the population of Turtle Island worked on his farms, most of the people were indebted to him and couldn't leave their jobs; those who tried to escape without paying their debts were hunted by his henchmen and murdered as examples.

However, there was one opportunity for a simple worker to gain a bigger remuneration: to become a henchman. The problem was that a henchman's job was to assure that workers remained productive and obedient, to collect taxes and other payments and to severely punish those who didn't fall in line. That was the job Osamu had chosen. His alleged reason for working for Yamanaka was to pay their family's debt and save enough money to buy a good boat, so he and his brother could start a travelling business. For Ken, that excuse wasn't good enough. Nevertheless, it was difficult to say no to Osamu.

For that reason, he was following his brother and the other henchmen up the hill to fight the revolutionaries. Osamu insisted for Ken to carry a shotgun like his, but Ken took a small pistol instead. He wasn't planning to fire it, but his brother wouldn't like to hear that.

“Just you wait until you shoot someone for the first time, Ken. You'll see there's nothing difficult about it,” Osamu told him.

“Have you ever... killed people...?” Ken asked.

“I do my job,” Osamu said back. “If everybody just did what they were supposed to do, they wouldn't have to be punished. Honestly, it's their own fault if they get killed.”

“Was it Mom's and Dad's fault...?” Ken muttered.

Osamu turned to face him. His angry expression made Ken step back.

“Stop bringing them up!” Osamu ordered. “They shouldn't have tried to run from paying their debt! They should've paid it! If it wasn't for their transgression, maybe I wouldn't have to do this kind of job in the first place! I'm the one who provides for you, so show me some respect!”

“I do work on the farm...” Ken murmured, looking down.

“You can barely buy bread with your payment!” Osamu stated. “Which is why you should join me as a henchman already! I'll show you how there's no big deal about it!”

Ken shivered, but didn't say anything else. Osamu wouldn't listen to him, anyway.

Right before they entered the woods, someone came from among the trees. It was a young man with spiky red hair and black eyes. He stood in front of the group of 80 people and gave them a severe look.

“You should turn back right away!” the stranger told them. “You are dealing with forces you don't comprehend and your insistence on fighting the revolutionaries will bring-”

Osamu shot the stranger on the forehead before he could finish his sentence. Blood splattered from the bullet injury as the man fell on his back, completely still.

“WHAT DID YOU DO?” Ken shouted.

“I did my job,” Osamu replied, coldly.

“You just killed someone!” Ken cried. “How can you act as if that's normal?! What's the matter with you?!”

“You better stop disrespecting me, Ken! Or else!” Osamu said in a threatening tone.

However, they noticed shrieks coming from the large group around them; those men and women who usually bragged about not being scared by anything were all pointing to the stranger who had been killed not long before. Ken and Osamu turned to that direction and saw the red-haired man standing up. The bloody hole on his forehead expelled the bullet and then closed itself. He tried to wipe away some of the blood on his face, but he just spread it more.

“You're still here...?” the stranger had a confused voice. “I had never come back so fast... please, don't kill me again, otherwise-”

The henchmen discharged their weapons on the stranger as if there was no tomorrow. Maybe because they probably thought there would be no tomorrow for them if they didn't kill that thing, whatever that was.

“I-I-I must've missed the shot earlier,” Osamu muttered, shaking from head to toes, “yeah... t-that's what happened... but now we definitely killed that guy!”

“OH MY GODDESS, WHAT THE HECK?!” various people shouted, pointing at the man soaked in his own blood, who was once again rising to his feet. The henchmen tried to shoot again, but realized they were out of munition.

“You all are really inconsiderate people, you know that?!” the stranger shouted, furious. “It's my third resurrection today! THIRD! I can't wait for you to die and go to the Underworld! All the people you've killed are waiting for you there! And then, you'll understand the pain you've inflicted on so many others!”

“U-Underworld...?” Osamu asked in a weak voice. “Is he talking about Hell...? D-Did that thing come from H-Hell?!”

“It's a demon!” Someone yelled. “He's going to kill us and drag us to Hell!”

“Do you see now that you're dealing with forces you don't understand?” the red-haired man inquired. “Leave the revolutionaries alone or face the consequences!”

The henchmen all screamed and ran away. Ken was the only one left behind. He fell to his knees, shaking. What had he just witnessed?

“Nooooooooo!!!” a cry came from the woods, followed by an elegant blond man running in the direction of the person who was soaked in his own blood. “Koushiro! You ruined everything! You were supposed to deliver the inspiring speech I wrote and make them see the errors of their ways!”

Five more people followed the well-dressed young man down the hill.

“Well, our group escaped safely and those dreadful henchmen are gone,” a woman with orange hair and a gentle smile said. “The way I see, everything turned out fine. Cheer up, Takeru!”

“But my beautiful speech was never heard!” Takeru cried. “I knew I should've been the one to deliver it!”

“If you had done that, you'd be the one shot on the head,” an older blond man with a grumpy face told the younger one, “unlike Koushiro, you can't come back to life. You would've died pointlessly!”

“You don't have to be so matter-of-the-fact, Yamato...” the woman with orange hair said.

“The special protection I created worked perfectly!” a beautiful lady with shiny purple hair announced in a proud voice while approaching Koushiro.

“About that, Miss Miyako...” Koushiro murmured, taking from under his shirt what looked like a deformed piece of armor, “... you'll probably have to fix it...”

“That's easy!” Miyako dismissed. “But, tell me, how did you do that trick of faking being shot in the head? It was quite impressive, I must say.”

“I was actually shot in the head multiple times,” Koushiro told her. “I died twice.”

“Yeah, right!” Miyako laughed.

“It's true, Miyako,” a young man with dark pink hair said, “if we look around, we'll certainly find pieces of Koushiro's-”

And, at that moment, his eyes locked with Ken's. Cold sweat ran down Ken's forehead. The revolutionaries had discovered him! What would they do to someone that had stood by their enemies' side? Ken tried to remember terrifying stories about how vengeful the revolutionaries were. But the truth was that he had never actually heard any story like that. When the common folk talked about the revolutionaries, they always used the words “good-for-nothing” and “hiding among the trees.” Maybe Ken shouldn't worry too much about his fate, after all.

“There's still one henchman left!” the pink-haired guy shouted, pointing a finger at Ken, startling almost everyone else.

“You mean you hadn't seen him?” the teenager with dark hair and green eyes asked.

“Iori, you had seen him and didn't alert us?!” Miyako was alarmed.

“I thought he had surrendered or something!” Iori adopted a defensive tone. “How did nobody else notice a person kneeling on the ground?!”

“I don't know... he has kind of an unremarkable face, I guess...” the one with pink hair said.

 _Unremarkable?_ Ken couldn't accept that insult! Sure, he had trouble standing up to his beliefs and confronting people, but that didn't mean... in truth, that probably meant he was an unremarkable person. Understanding that made him depressed. Especially because the ones calling him unremarkable were the good-for-nothing revolutionaries that did nothing more than hiding among the trees all day!

“That's kind of a mean thing to say about someone, Daisuke,” the woman with orange hair told the man who had insulted Ken.

“Sora, we don't have to be nice to one of our enemies!” Yamato pointed out. Then, he got closer to Ken and pointed his shotgun to his face.

Reassessing his previous conclusion, Ken decided that maybe he should worry a bit about the revolutionaries. Or at least about the blond grumpy one pointing a shotgun to his face like some maniac.

“Wait, no! He's an ally! Or, better said, he's going to be an ally!” Koushiro shouted. The young man covered in blood ran to Ken's direction and put himself between him and Yamato. “I had a vision of him... erhm... it's kind of a random vision, actually... you were all on a ship... or a boat... and Mr. Takeru was looking at the moon and wondering in loud voice what surprising developments the trip would bring...”

“That is indeed something I do every time I travel...” Takeru admitted, looking up at the dark sky while striking a dramatic pose. Or at least that was what Ken thought he wanted to do as the younger blond man ran his fingers through his hair, shook his head slowly and then pointed at nothing specific in the dark sky. “Because life... is the greatest mystery of all...”

Ken wasn't sure what was happening. Were those fools really the revolutionaries? Even though nobody ever gave too much credit to them, Ken had always assumed they had to be minimally competent to be considered a threat to Yamanaka. But upon encountering that group, he couldn't help but wonder how they hadn't been wiped out yet? Maybe Yamanaka's men were even more incompetent than them. To realize that his oppressors weren't actually a mighty unit but a bunch of incompetent morons that could be taken down with minimal organization and effort was a bit underwhelming.

Koushiro turned to face him, like all the others were doing. But, unlike the other revolutionaries, there was no glimpse of preoccupation in his eyes, as if he was sure that Ken wasn't a threat. Koushiro intrigued him, not only because of his unexplainable resurrections, but mainly because he had the air of someone who knew a lot more than he was willing to share. It took him a few seconds to realize that the others were expecting him to say something. Unsure about what to do, Ken stood up and raised his hands above his head, as a sign that he wasn't dangerous.

“Listen, my name is Ken...” he hesitated, remembering that revealing his family name would denounce him as the brother of someone who certainly had killed several revolutionaries, “I never wanted to work for Yamanaka as a henchman... I worked on one of his farms, though... but what other choice did I have if not working for him in a way or another? He owns everything on Turtle Island! I never wanted to become a henchman, but I was coerced into joining their group anyway! I never killed anyone, though! But if I were to kill a person... it would be the bastard who had my parents murdered because they tried to run from their debts!”

Against his will, Ken let a couple of tears escape his eyes. It was never easy to remember what had happened to his family. If his parents hadn't been caught trying to escape, his predicament certainly wouldn't have been so bad. Maybe his brother wouldn't have become a murderer for the sake of taking care of him.

Yamato put down his shotgun. The threatening aura he had been exhibiting had vanished. In his blue eyes, Ken thought he had seen a glimpse of sadness and compassion.

“My parents were also killed because of debt...” Daisuke said. He approached Ken and put a hand on the newcomer's shoulder, in solidarity. “They were good people... they didn't deserve that... nobody deserves that!”

“My family is alive, but we've been persecuted too. We tried to own a small business... our goal was to sell things for affordable prices... but it got shut-down by force by those men...they broke everything we owned... Yamanaka doesn't like anyone defying his monopoly...” Miyako muttered, also approaching Ken.

“For as long as Yamanaka stays alive, everybody on Turtle Island will continue to suffer!” Sora stated, clenching her fists. Ken was taken aback by the intensity in her voice. It was if those terrible things had happened to her. Perhaps they had, to some extent.

Ken was starting to understand that the revolutionaries were normal people, just like him and everybody he knew. Of course, they suffered because of Yamanaka as well. That should make them the most motivated people to fight him. And thanks to Koushiro, who had dispersed the henchmen, there was no better time to fight that horrible man.

“Let's go kill Yamanaka!” Ken proposed. “His henchmen ran away and, from what I heard, there's only a weird monk protecting him right now! This is the best chance we'll ever have of killing him! Let's do it!”

The revolutionaries exchanged concerned looks. Koushiro paled and looked down.

“Do you think we're foolish enough to listen to someone who was our enemy a couple of minutes ago?” Iori inquired.

“We gave our comrades time to flee, our mission was accomplished!” Yamato reminded the others. “We should reunite with them now! There's no need to do anything unnecessary”

That comment ignited Ken's fury. Was it unnecessary to fight? Was it unnecessary to free Turtle Island from that tyrant?

“Oh, right! Go hide in the woods again! That's all you revolutionaries do, right?” Ken accused. “It's not like you ever bothered about helping anyone!”

“That's not true!” Sora interjected. “We've been recruiting new people and organizing our forces to prepare-”

“For how many decades have the revolutionaries been preparing?” Ken wasn't willing to back down. “How many people have died due to your inaction? How many have lost their loved ones because you weren't ready to fight? You are all a bunch of useless spineless good-for-nothings!”

Nobody contested Ken's accusations, as if deep down they already knew all that. Ken was disappointed. If they at least tried to argue, maybe he could understand the reasons for someone to stay still on the face of injustice. And then, maybe, he would have an excuse for his own life-long inaction. But the truth was that there was no excuse and it was time for Ken to take responsibility for his future instead of letting himself follow the flow. Even if he was alone, he had the moral obligation to at least try to do the right thing.

Ken was about to turn around and head towards Yamanaka's mansion when Sora suddenly spoke:

“You're right!”

Ken stopped moving. Did he hear that right? Did his unremarkable words have an effect on someone else?

“Sora, no!” Yamato protested.

“He's right! This is our best chance! We might never get one like this again!” she stated.

“It's not intelligent to invade that place without a plan!” Yamato insisted. “We should at least head back to our comrades and plan an attack!”

“That would give Yamanaka's henchmen time to regroup,” Miyako said. “This window of opportunity won't open again! We should strike now!”

“I don't like the idea of listening to an enemy but... I'll accept anything to bring justice to Yamanaka's victims!” Iori murmured, angrily.

“To me, it would be stupid to lose this chance! Think about all the people we could save if Yamanaka's rule ends tonight!” Daisuke had hope in his voice. “We can do this! We can win!”

“It's a bit sudden... but I'm all for this new development!” Takeru exclaimed. “In the end, my words really inspired transformation!”

“You mean Ken's words,” Miyako corrected him. “Nobody listened to your speech.”

Takeru had a mortified expression. Then, he looked at Ken with rage so deep that it should only be directed at the most despicable of creatures.

“It seems that there's no stopping you...” Yamato sighed. Then, he turned to Koushiro and asked: “You said we would all be on a ship, right? Does that mean that none of us is going to die tonight?”

“That's correct,” Koushiro confirmed. “You will all survive... I probably won't, though...”

“Why do you say that?” Sora asked, worried.

“That monk that is protecting Yamanaka is not an ordinary person... he's the one responsible for most of my deaths for the last centuries...” Koushiro informed the others. “He won't stop until he kills me for good.”

“Who on Earth is that monk?” Daisuke questioned. “Another demon?”

“An old enemy?” Takeru wondered. “A nemesis?”

Koushiro hesitated for a few seconds before answering:

“My best friend.”


	4. Old friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With no news from his henchmen, who had gone up the hill after the revolutionaries, the lord of Turtle Island has a conversation with the monk. The mysterious cleric sounds like a young man, but doesn’t act like one. The Goddess, the Devil, the Angel of Death, the Light stealer... the mystery behind Koushiro’s curse begins to be unveiled by his oldest friend.

**Chapter 4: Old friend**

Shigeo Yamanaka was very surprised by the visit of a member of the Order of the Nameless Monks that morning. They were the highest order in the hierarchy of the Church, having only the High Priestess above them, and they were said to be the most skilled warriors in the world. The one who entered his house unceremoniously had the voice of a young man, but something in his way of talking denounced more age and experience than that person should have.

The monk told him that the Goddess herself had given him the mission of helping Yamanaka destroy the revolutionaries on that island. Yamanaka wasn't sure he could trust that man, but to oppose a nameless monk could bring grave repercussions, such as losing his title of Lord of Turtle Island. Besides, sending his armed henchmen up the hill to hunt down the rebels would probably not cause too many losses, considering that the revolutionaries usually ran from battles they couldn't win. What caused him apprehension, though, was to be left alone in the mansion with that cleric who, not satisfied in sending away his henchmen, also ordered Yamanaka's employees to leave the place for the rest of the day.

Hours passed and the night fell. The smoke that had been seen on the hill earlier had already dissipated. Yet, there was no sign of anyone returning from that place. His men largely outnumbered the rebels, there should be no possibility that they could have lost. The noble kept telling himself that, attempting to remain calm. His men couldn't have been defeated! It was impossible!

But what if it wasn't? It became too hard to divert his mind from that possibility. He sent everybody there! Everybody! If the revolutionaries, by some miracle, killed them all, Yamanaka would be left without enforcers! Who would collect the taxes? Who would punish the insolent and ungrateful peasants? What about the servants? Who would keep them under control?

Then, a different and more visceral fear emerged. In the off chance that he lost all his henchmen, who would keep the Lord of Turtle Island safe? Those ignorant peasants would invade his property and steal his valuable possessions! Those brutes would threaten his life in exchange for richness they didn't deserve! The Yamanaka house had served the Empire for almost one thousand years, which was the same as serving the Goddess! How could he accept that the blessings received by his family, a true reward for their hard work and loyalty, could be tainted by simple-minded commoners who didn't know their place?

Yamanaka took a deep breath. There was nothing good at letting his imagination get wild. That cleric, a true messenger of the Goddess, had assured him that things would work out fine. Weren't the nameless monks known for being undefeatable? The noble had nothing to fear when a carrier of divine grace had vowed to protect him. Nevertheless, he was still standing in front of the large window of his living room, trying to spot anything suspicious in the dark. Without Yamanaka noticing it, the monk took the liberty to take two glasses of wine from a cabinet. He approached Yamanaka and offered him one of the glasses while taking a sip from the other.

“I thought monks weren't allowed to drink alcohol,” Yamanaka commented, astonished at the audacity of that man, who was treating himself to such expensive wine.

Shouldn't monks be frugal? Shouldn't they avoid earthly pleasures? That man was certainly a disgrace to the Church! Yamanaka wished he could see the other's face, which remained mostly covered by the cloak's hood, so that he could give the description to one of his friends in the court, who would certainly alert the High Priestess about the inadequacy of having such a disrespectful man as part of the Church's highest order!

The monk smirked, confusing Yamanaka. He couldn't imagine how anything he had said could have been perceived as funny.

“You seem like someone very knowledgeable on the matters of religion” the cleric told him. “How about I put that to a test? It'd help to pass the time, don't you agree?”

Yamanaka's annoyance dissolved as terror took over his being. He had heard stories about the ways the nameless monks tested people's faith through the centuries. In all those stories, he didn't remember about someone who had passed the test. The punishment for failing, as everybody knew, was excommunication. Was that monk really such a petty person, did that man have such a low soul, that he would get revenge over an innocent remark about wine? Especially when that cleric was the one in fault while Shigeo Yamanaka had never done anything wrong in his entire existence?

“Let's see...” the monk said. The amusement in his voice was undeniable, “what can you tell me about Justine the Great?”

Yamanaka relaxed. That should be the easiest question in the world. Maybe that cleric really just wanted to pass the time. Why did his imagination have to be that much of a burden?

“The first Empress was the mightiest warrior to ever live. She never lost a battle and conquered the entire Old Continent by the time she was 34 years old,” Yamanaka spoke with absolute confidence. “When she died, right after giving birth to her son Marius, it is said that pure white light rose from her body, marking her ascension to the Heavens. That consolidated the already popular belief that Justine was never an ordinary human, but a goddess incarnated. The only Goddess to ever bless our world!”

The monk laughed. Yamanaka was perplexed at the reaction. In the good old days, that lack of respect for the Goddess would demand death by fire!

“Such passion! Such faith! You remind me of myself when I was younger,” the monk told him.

“I am older than you!” Yamanaka stated. “In my very long life, I had never met anyone nearly as blasphemous as you, monk!”

“Is that so? How lucky must you be...” the cleric's voice suddenly became cold and low. Nervous, Yamanaka drank some of the wine that he had been offered.

“I had a blasphemous friend, once...” the monk said, gazing out of the window. “My sister and I rescued him from the sea, I remember he was too terrified to speak. We arranged a place for him at the Izumi farm, which was close to ours. Mr. and Mrs. Izumi were old and needed help... he said that he wanted to help people... back then, I believed in everything he said...”

“Why are you telling me about a random friend of yours?” Yamanaka inquired.

“Oh, my apologies...” the monk had irony in his voice, “is there something else you wish to discuss?”

“As a matter of fact, there is!” Yamanaka stated. “For instance, why hasn't any of my henchmen returned yet? How long could it take for them to hunt those damn rebels? You told me it would be an easy victory!”

“Your henchmen saw the Devil and ran away,” the monk informed. “They won't come to this place, but the revolutionaries will.”

“What did you just say?” Yamanaka believed that the other man had a strange sense of humor.

“You remind me of the Lord of Turtle Island we had when I was growing up, Shigeo...”

“Don't call me by my first name, young man!” Yamanaka scolded the other. “Does your insolence know no limits! This is definitely not the behavior I expect from a holy man!”

“When the plague came, that man didn't care about the people who were dying,” the monk continued his story, ignoring the other. “He hid behind the walls of his castle, praying that he could be spared...” his tone became increasingly darker, which sent chills down Yamanaka's spine, “I've always wondered what would have happened if at least he had tried to help... my parents... my sister... maybe they could've been saved. But that lord was a selfish pig who only had contempt for the people who served him. Just like you...”

“Now, that's enough!” Yamanaka roared. “I don't care about your rank! I'll denounce you to the Emperor himself! And the Emperor shall have the High Priestess excommunicate you! I'm from an important noble family and won't tolerate anyone disrespect-”

The monk took out a sword that had been concealed under his cloak and pointed it to the noble's direction. Yamanaka fell on his back. He hadn't let go of the glass of wine he had been holding, which had broken and was now cutting the palm of his hand.

Was he going to die? He had never seriously considered that anyone would have the nerve to spill the blood of a noble man like him. That was inconceivable! To kill a noble was to insult the Emperor! It was an insult to the Goddess herself! As a cleric, that man should know that better than anyone! Or did he think that, for being a nameless monk, he was entitled to disrupt the natural order of the world?

The monk approached him and put the tip of the sword on the old man's neck, who was shaking from the top of his head to his toes. He wanted to protest against the ignominy of it all. But, disgracefully, his self-preservation instinct seemed to have proven itself as stronger than his honor. Therefore, he begged:

“P-Please, don't k-kill me... I-I didn't mean to offend you in a-any way... I'll give you a-anything you w-want... I'll do a-anything...”

“Do you know what would be fun? What about we continue with our little test?” the assailant proposed in low voice. “Tell me about the Devil, Shigeo.”

Yamanaka knew that his life depended on him answering that right. Unfortunately, that knowledge only made him more anxious. All the things that he had learned about the subject were escaping his mind in great speed. Desperate, he tried to answer before he forgot what the question even was.

“T-The stealer of L-Light...” Yamanaka stuttered, “h-he t-tried to s-steal a s-soul from H-Heaven and g-got p-p-punished... c-cursed w-with i-infinite d-deaths...”

“That's the basic version of the story,” the monk commented. “The soul he tried to steal belonged to the kindest and sweetest person who had ever lived. When she was taken by the plague, I thought my life was over... but my friend...” he trembled, “he promised that he would _help_ her... the next thing I knew, Justine herself was in front of me, and she told me...” a single tear was visible rolling down his cheek, “... she told me that my friend's sins had been so grave that it wasn't enough to just curse him. My sister, the one he had tried to rescue, was sent to the deepest dungeon in Hell. And the Goddess gave me the mission of purging Koushiro's soul until it's completely purified... I was to kill my best friend again and again, until his soul was saved... only then, she would release her... to save my sister, I have become the Angel of Death.”

At that point, Yamanaka was completely convinced that the cleric was out of his mind and lost hope that he could be able to reason with him.

“I believe the revolutionaries have arrived,” the monk announced, turning to the door of the living room. A muscular blond man and a woman with orange hair kicked the door open and entered the room, accompanied by five other people. They all were pointing their guns at Yamanaka, who was still on the floor, lying on his back. The blond man shot the monk twice. The bullets, however, stopped in midair. They turned incandescent and melted, never reaching their target.

“He really is invulnerable... just like Koushiro said...” the redhead woman murmured.

“I-Impossible!” another woman, with purple hair, exclaimed. She had a disturbed look on her face.

“What a lovely group you are,” the monk commented, bemused. “I don't feel like killing you tonight. It would be better to get out of my way.”

“You promised you would protect me!” Yamanaka shouted, desperate. “I did everything you told me to do, monk! You can't just leave me with those bandits!”

“Are you really that dense, Shigeo?” the monk asked, annoyed. “Were you paying attention to anything I said? I never intended to protect you! I simply used you to lure my friend to this place!”

The glass window behind the cleric and the noble was broken as six bullets, in sequence, were shot from the outside. The bullets were stopped by an invisible field surrounding the monk and, in a matter of seconds, they melted.

Astonished, Yamanaka watched as that strange man turned to the broken window, beaming. The monk took his hood off, allowing the wind to mess his large brown hair.

At the garden, outside the window, a man drenched in blood stood, still holding the shotgun.

“How many times did you die on your way here, Koushiro?” the monk inquired, jumping to the garden. “Honestly, you embarrass me at times. What was the big idea, anyway? You know you can't hurt me. Not physically, at least.”

“I was simply trying to get your attention,” Koushiro informed. “Sometimes, you can be so easily distracted...”

“You should know by now that nothing can distract me from you,” the other said, pointing his blade at Koushiro's direction. “Shall we dance, old friend?”

Koushiro looked at him with sadness and replied:

“What other choice do I have, Taichi?”


	5. Old foe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Sora faces the man responsible for her father's death, Taichi has to decide how far he's willing to go to save his sister.

**Chapter 5: Old foe**

Before they headed to the mansion, the group stopped close to a huge lonely tree on the field. Underneath it was one of the secret spots where the revolutionaries kept extra guns, in case of emergency. After digging in the dirt and retrieving a chest, Yamato opened its lock with the back of his shotgun. Once the chest was open, Koushiro reached out to get one of the weapons, but Yamato stopped him, reaching his arm to keep Koushiro at a distance. The others, who were surrounding them, observed silently their exchange of gazes.

“Who are you?” Yamato asked Koushiro, coldly.

“I thought we were past introductions at this point,” Koushiro told him, seemingly annoyed.

“I'm not lending you a weapon until I know I can trust you,” Yamato stated.

“Yamato, didn't you see how he was willing to die to help us?” Sora asked.

“He also warned us about the invasion! He saved our camp!” Daisuke pointed out.

“He kind of saved my life without even knowing me...” Ken murmured.

“Just because he's clearly a conman doesn't mean he can't be useful for us,” Miyako gave her opinion. “His fake death trick was really convincing.”

“Besides, we're already letting a henchman of Yamanaka join us. Koushiro couldn't possibly be someone worse or more suspicious than Ken!” Iori commented.

“I'm not a henchman!” Ken protested.

Yamato closed the chest, putting one foot on its lid. He crossed his arms and kept staring at Koushiro, refusing to be distracted by anything.

“Who are you?” Yamato asked again.

Koushiro had a somber look on his face. He closed his eyes for a brief moment and began to say:

“I was just someone trying to help my friend Hikari... I wanted to bring her back to life, and then I made everything worse... not only was I cursed, but I also doomed Taichi, Hikari's brother... my best friend...”

“You were trying to bring someone back from the dead?” Sora asked, softly.

“To be cursed with endless resurrections for trying to resurrect someone is quite the dramatic irony!” Takeru sounded impressed. “Was that how you got the clairvoyance as well?”

“No... that was before... it's not really relevant now...” Koushiro muttered, looking away.

“Is Taichi like you? Does he die and resurrect?” Daisuke asked.

“Taichi is invulnerable,” Koushiro replied. “He's incapable of getting physically hurt. He can't die nor age... and he also believes that if he kills me for good his sister will-”

“Who cursed you?” Yamato interrupted. He observed how Koushiro paled after hearing that question and grew more suspicious. Nevertheless, the other gave him an answer:

“It was a woman with a blue staff... she was guarding a door...”

“What woman? What door? What does that mean?!” Yamato was losing the little patience he still managed to have.

“That's enough, Yamato! Leave Koushiro alone!” Sora reprehended him.

“But he hasn't given us any satisfactory answer!” Yamato protested, turning to Sora. “How can you expect me to trust someone I know nothing about?!”

“You knew nothing about me back when I barged into your farm all those years ago and yet you trusted me right away!” Sora reminded him. “If you can't trust Koushiro yet, then trust my judgement about him.”

Yamato sighed, feeling defeated. For a long time, he had found himself unable to deny a request from Sora. He heard a smirk from his right and saw Takeru smiling maliciously at him.

“Soooo... she barged into your farm, huh?” Takeru teased. “Was it love at first sight? Why did you trust her so quickly?”

Yamato felt blood rushing to his face and stuttered:

“T-That's not r-relevant right now!!!”

“Hey, now that I think about it, I never heard how you and Sora met!” Miyako said.

“Yeah! She just showed up with you one day and told us 'it's a long story!'” Daisuke added.

“Like you were a lost animal she had taken in because of pity,” Iori commented in a serious tone.

“You're kind of a harsh person, aren't you, Iori?” Ken observed.

Iori narrowed his eyes and looked at horizon as he stated:

“Life is harsh.”

Relieved that he no longer was at the center of attention, Koushiro approached Sora. She had been watching Yamato being interrogated with an amused face.

“Thank you for defending me,” Koushiro told her, bowing slightly.

“It's alright!” Sora said. “Don't mind Yamato. He might seem difficult now but once you two get to know each other better you'll be friends in no time.”

Koushiro lowered his head, bearing a depressed look.

“Anyway,” Yamato spoke again, turning to Sora. “We still have to discuss what we're going to do once we reach Yamanaka's place.”

“What is there left to discuss?” Sora asked, giving him a serious look. “We'll kill him.”

“That would be a terrible idea,” Yamato told her. “Remember how the revolutionaries of the Pine Tree Archipelago were villainized after they killed their nobles ten years ago?”

“Don't you think they deserved to be villainized after what they did?” Takeru questioned. “Aside from murdering innocent wealthy people, they're Devil worshipers who dance naked around bonfires and eat children for breakfast! I read all about it on the Imperial Press!”

There were a few seconds of awkward silence. Then, Miyako and Daisuke began to laugh.

“W-What is so funny?” Takeru was confused.

“See?” Yamato talked as if he had proved a point. “That's the kind of imperialistic propaganda they'll use on us if we kill Yamanaka. They'll turn the people against us and the revolution will lose! We can't kill him!”

“Are you suggesting we should let that tyrant live because otherwise people would spread lies about us?” Sora inquired. “I don't know if you noticed it, but we're already villainized! You heard what Ken said about the revolutionaries earlier!”

“Sora, we have to be smart! We can't afford to make mistakes now!” Yamato stated. “If we kill Yamanaka, we'll be risking everything we've ever fought for! The Empire will strike us at full force!”

“Oh, because the Empire hasn't been striking us so far? Is that what you're saying?” Sora retorted. “I suppose all the people we've lost were due to the Empire going easy on us!”

The tension between the two of them was making everybody nervous. Takeru decided that he should do something to bring those two into an agreement. He couldn't refuse an opportunity to use his mastery of oratory for a good cause.

“What if you put Yamanaka through a trial?” Takeru suggested. “You could assemble the revolutionaries and prepare a public trial, in which you'll list his crimes and get testimonies. And you have to make sure everybody on Turtle Island will follow the trial. A talented public speaker could convince the people of his villainy. Also, get someone to be his defender, so people will see that it's a fair trial.”

“That's... actually a good idea...” Yamato murmured, seemingly astonished.

“I have to say, Takeru, that's the smartest thing I've heard from you!” Daisuke praised Takeru, enthusiastically.

“I suppose a trial could have a positive effect for our cause...” Sora muttered.

“I still think we should kill Yamanaka while we have the chance,” Ken said.

“No, a trial would make things more legitimate,” Miyako told him.

“It'd be a way to expose all the bad things he's done,” Daisuke added. “We can't underestimate how many supporters he still has.”

“That way, more people would see Yamanaka as their enemy and not just as the enemy of the revolutionaries!” Iori concluded.

“I guess it's decided, then...” Sora said, looking down.

“It's the right way to do things. Everything will work out,” Yamato promised her.

Sora smiled at him, but there was no joy in her eyes.

* * *

Daisuke and Miyako tied Yamanaka to a chair while Ken and Iori kept aiming their shotguns at the old man. Sora observed the scene a few steps away, keeping her arms crossed. Although she tried to remain calm, the fury in her eyes was evident. Yamato, who couldn't take his eyes off of her, could only imagine how difficult it was for her to be close to the person responsible for her father's death.

“Why don't we just kill this guy now, anyway?” Ken wondered.

“We're not having that discussion again!” Iori replied. “We must assemble the other revolutionaries and put him through a trial!”

“And what do we do with him before the trial?” Ken asked. “Throw him in jail?”

“You bandits wouldn't dare to incarcerate me!” Yamanaka shouted. “I am a noble! The very rules of the universe dictate that I am a superior man!”

“Oh, be quiet already!” Daisuke ordered while tightening the last knot. “Your reign of terror is over! It's time for you to face all the people you've hurt, Yamanaka!”

The old man's eyes widened in terror when he heard that. But then his scared expression was replaced by one of outrage.

“You wouldn't dare to touch me!” Yamanaka roared. “All the disgraces of the world will befall you if you hurt me in any way!”

Miyako slapped Yamanaka.

“Oh my goodness, look at this!” she said in an exaggerated surprised voice. “I hit a noble man and nothing happened to me at all! It's almost like the so-called divine nature of monarchy is a fraud designed to keep mediocre people in power!”

The look on Yamanaka's face was of someone who had been slapped fifteen times in less than a minute. Meanwhile, Ken looked at Miyako with profound admiration.

“How are you more blasphemous than that damn monk?” Yamanaka asked in a weak voice. “He was spitting some crazy nonsense about the Devil but you, young lady, really outdid him! What are you going to say next? That all humans are equal and deserve equal rights?”

“All humans _are_ equal and they deserve equal rights!” Miyako stated.

“You really are crazier than the monk!” Yamanaka affirmed.

“Stop talking to that man already!” Sora ordered, startling everybody. Even Takeru, who had been observing Koushiro and the monk staring at each other at the garden for a few minutes, turned his attention to Sora.

Yamato looked at her with concern. Sora's body was shaking and her eyes shone with tears she refused to let go. Being in the presence of that man was clearly too much for her.

“Those eyes of yours...” Yamanaka had malice in his voice, “could you possibly be Takenouchi's daughter? Tell me, how much did she like the death I arranged for her husband?”

The fury that Sora had been controlling for so long exploded and she advanced in that man's direction. Yamato put himself in front of her just in time.

“Sora, you can't let him play with you!” Yamato pleaded.

“Right! Sora! That was the name of their daughter!” Yamanaka laughed. “My men told me that your father died crying both your name and your mother's! I wish I had been there to watch, it must've been tremendously entertaining!”

“Shut up!” Sora shouted. She wanted to hit Yamanaka with all the pain she had borne for years, all the heartbreak that he had caused. But Yamato wouldn't let her do it. No matter how much she tried to evade him, Yamato continued to block her path.

“Get out of my way! Why are you protecting him?!” Sora inquired.

“I'm protecting you, Sora!” Yamato answered. “Don't fall for his mind games! You have to be strong!”

“I'm tired of being strong!” Sora cried, at last letting the tears she had been holding back flow. “I'm so tired! He has to pay for what he did!”

“He will! I promise you that!” Yamato assured her.

He gently wrapped his arms around Sora. She hugged him back and buried her face on Yamato's shoulder.

“Pathetic!” Yamanaka mocked.

Miyako hit his head with the back of her shotgun, which made the old man lose consciousness. That action made Ken's admiration for her grow even more.

“I'm going to go get Leader and the other revolutionaries,” Miyako announced. “I'll be back soon, unless I get hit by _divine punishment_.”

“I'll go with you,” Daisuke offered.

“Thank you...” Sora said, letting go of Yamato. She wiped her tears with the back of her hand and showed the others a small smile. “Let's do things properly and bring justice to my father and every other person wronged by Yamanaka.”

They all nodded.

“Hold on, what happened there while I wasn't looking?!” Takeru suddenly shouted, pointing at the garden. Taichi had pinned Koushiro against the grass and crossed the redhead's heart with his sword. A puddle of blood was forming around them.

* * *

Taichi was expecting Koushiro to give his usual excuses, like he always did.

The redhead's lies had long lost the ability of deceiving Taichi. Nevertheless, Koushiro always insisted that he wasn't the villain Justine had made of him.

However, Koushiro also never denied trying to rescue Hikari's soul. Nor did he deny that she was sent to Hell because of him. Those facts alone were more than enough to prove his guilt. So what if Koushiro had good intentions? His excuses wouldn't save Hikari. Only the purging of his soul would.

Taichi never enjoyed taking his friend's life. Because of that, Taichi always tried to do it as quickly and painless as possible, always hoping that Koushiro had finally died enough times. But he kept coming back, asking Taichi to trust him... promising that he could still save Hikari but couldn't tell him how. Taichi could only wonder if his friend would ever get tired of repeating those lies.

Judging by his current silence, Koushiro seemed to be done with the lies at last.

“Have you finally given up?” Taichi asked, slowly approaching the other.

“Never,” Koushiro replied.

“Are you going to fight me, then?” Taichi inquired.

Koushiro put the shotgun on the grass and kicked it to his left, out of his reach.

Taichi was a few steps away from him, close enough for the tip of his sword to touch Koushiro's chest. Koushiro didn't flinch.

“When I kill you this time... please, don't come back...” Taichi pleaded. “She told me that you just need to yield. Just say that you've learned your lesson and this will all stop. Our souls will be able to be at peace. Hikari will go back to Heaven and we all will be together again. Don't you want that? Give up now! Let me save you!”

Koushiro gave him a serene look, as if Taichi's words weren't affecting him at all. Could he really be that heartless?

“Hikari told me that she wanted to leave Turtle Island and see the world,” Koushiro said.

“Enough with that story!” Taichi roared. “Hikari was happy on Turtle Island! The three of us were happy together! She would never say such a thing!”

“To you, she wouldn't,” Koushiro let him know. “She was always trying to protect you. Even in her deathbed...”

“How many times do I have to tell you the truth until you get it?!” Taichi was losing his patience. “Hikari had accepted her death! She accepted that she was sick and nobody could do anything about it! But you...” Taichi pierced the other's chest with the sword, “... you just had to play the savior, didn't you?! You went there and played with forces you didn't understand and because of that my sister is in Hell and I am a monster!”

Taichi sunk his sword in Koushiro's chest. Not satisfied, he plunged his body to the grass. Koushiro kept looking at him, not breaking eye contact even once, no matter how much pain he was feeling. Taichi kept pushing the sword, until its hilt was touching Koushiro's body. Its blade was nailing him to the ground. At that moment, Taichi was kneeling by his side, watching as life faded from his eyes like he had done so many times before. Once Koushiro took his last breath, Taichi closed his friend's eyes.

And then, the sword was forcefully pulled out of Koushiro's body by an unknown force and launched into the sky in such high speed that Taichi lost sight of it. The wound in Koushiro's chest rapidly closed. In a matter of seconds, the redhead opened his eyes and stood up again.

“You had never come back this fast before...” Taichi muttered, in shock.

Koushiro had an exhausted look on his face. He took a step forward and nearly fell, but was able to stay on his feet.

“I don't think I can afford to take breaks anymore...” Koushiro murmured. “You can kill me a thousand times... one billion times... and I'll return right away...”

“Stop it!” Taichi ordered. “Don't you understand that I'm trying to save your soul?”

“Even if you were to break my resistance, that woman wouldn't bring Hikari back...” Koushiro told him. “When will you understand that she sees you only as a tool to use against me?”

“Quiet!” Taichi shouted, grabbing Koushiro by the arms and pulling him closer. “How is it possible that after everything I've done, after all the times I've killed your body, you continue to be as blasphemous as you were back then? What will it take to make you yield?”

“I promised Hikari...” Koushiro said; his voice was so weak it was barely audible. “I can't stop... I can't stop now...”

At that moment, a distant memory resurged in Taichi's mind. In the room where he had been watching over his sister's body, Justine appeared before him. She told him what Koushiro had done and what he, Taichi, had to do. He could hear those words again, almost as if she was muttering them in his ear.

“ _Angel of Death, I give you wings made of holy fire. They will protect your body from everything and purify anything they touch.”_

For all those centuries, Taichi had refused to resort to that. To submit Koushiro to that kind of death would be unforgivable. But what other choice did he have? If Koushiro wasn't broken by the countless deaths he had gone through, _that one_ had to work.

Taichi summoned his wings.

They were six at total. Each one of them had two to three meters of wingspan and were made of orange flames.

With one flap of them, Taichi took flight with Koushiro, rising several meters into the air.

“Yield!” Taichi ordered.

Koushiro didn't say anything. He stared at the fire with eyes filled with horror. Taichi could feel his friend's body tremble, despite the heat emanating from his wings. Koushiro couldn't resist that, he just couldn't! He had to give up!

“I know you don't want to die like them,” Taichi told him. “I don't want to put you through that, so, please, just yield! Koushiro, I'm begging you... please, don't make me do this...”

Koushiro began to shed tears. It had been a long time since Taichi had seen him crying.

* * *

It had been a couple of months since Taichi and Hikari had rescued him from the sea. Koushiro barely talked to anyone and seemed to be scared all the time. They didn't really know anything about him.

Koushiro had said that he was from Shrimp Island, but gave no explanation about how he got to the middle of the sea. When asked if he had family, Koushiro looked down and muttered “not anymore.”

Taichi tried everything he could imagine to cheer the other boy up and make him talk more, with no effect.

During an afternoon when the siblings were spending time with Koushiro, who was brushing the Izumis' horses, Hikari said something that shocked both boys:

“I dreamed with your parents last night.”

Koushiro stared at her, astonished.

“Hikari, you shouldn't joke about that kind of thing!” Taichi scolded her.

“I'm not joking!” Hikari retorted. She then turned to Koushiro and continued “Their names were Ame and Shunsui, right? You really look like them, especially your mother. Her red hair was very beautiful...”

“How do you...?” Koushiro began to question.

“They asked me to tell you that you shouldn't feel guilty for running. They didn't want you to die with them... they didn't want you to burn...”

* * *

Those tears were just like the first ones Taichi had seen Koushiro shed. At that moment, Taichi realized he couldn't do that to his friend. Even though he was determined to save Hikari, that was a line he wasn't able to cross.

Then, Taichi felt something strange, a piercing sensation that seemed to set his nerves on fire. The sword that had been launched to the sky had fallen back. It made a hole in one of Taichi's wings and crossed his right arm.

The pain and the shock made him let go of Koushiro, who fell towards the garden. It should be impossible for Taichi to get hurt. But then, he noticed something else that was even more disturbing. There was a weak blue hue coming from the sword. He had only seen a hue like that once.

Taichi flew away. There was only one person who could give him answers.

* * *

“He's dead... he's actually dead this time... it's not a trick...” Miyako murmured, horrified, looking at Koushiro's body lying on the crater created by his fall.

“Don't worry, he's going to be okay!” Daisuke assured her. “How many times have we seen him resurrect today?”

“This isn't like one of his fake deaths, Daisuke! He fell from a really high place!” Miyako yelled. “He must've broken all his bones and his organs... I don't even want to think about his organs!”

“Miyako, you're the only one who still thinks he wasn't dying for real before,” Iori said.

“How can you deny Koushiro's supernatural nature after we just saw...” Takeru took a deep breath before continuing “... an invulnerable monk with wings of fire! How amazing was that? That man has to be on the cover of my book!”

Yamato kept observing Koushiro, waiting for him to come back to life like he had done before. He was getting apprehensive at how much it was taking for the other to resurrect.

* * *

Once again Koushiro found himself in that dark place. The cold wind whipping his face felt as painful as all the other times.

“I can't waste time here... I can't... I have to go back... I finally found Miss Sora...” he repeated to himself, trying to walk against the wind, “I can't stop now... I can't stop... I'm so tired... so tired... no, I can't take a break... I can't stop... Hikari... I can't stop...”

Then, he saw something he had never spotted at that place before. It seemed like a bar of flickering blue light floating a few steps in his front. The shape and the color of it reminded Koushiro of the staff used by that woman to curse him. Koushiro took a step in the direction of the light bar and stretched his arm, but a familiar voice made him stop.

“Don't touch that! It'll break your soul!”

He turned around and saw Hikari surrounded by pink light. She was wearing the white kimono she had when she passed away.

“You have more important things to do than coming to my rescue every time I get stuck in one of these...” Koushiro muttered, looking away. “I'd find my way out eventually...”

“You said that last time, and it took you 52 years,” Hikari said, giggling. “There's nothing to be embarrassed about, I help people in your situation all the time. Escaping Hells is my specialty.”

She approached him and offered him a hand. After Koushiro held it, he felt Hikari's warmth fill his soul. Almost instantaneously, the dark space was replaced by a flower field. The morning sun gave him a peaceful sensation. As he looked down, he noticed that there were no blood stains on his skin nor on the clothes Yamato had lent him earlier that day.

“Do you want to rest for a while?” Hikari asked.

“It's too easy to lose track of time here, and I can't afford it anymore, I finally found Miss Sora!” Koushiro replied. “We're so close now, closer than we've ever been... I can finally be more of help to you!”

“Don't burden yourself too much, we have many allies helping us,” Hikari told him.

“You have many allies helping you here... on my side, I'm alone...” Koushiro reminded her.

“Not anymore! You've found Sora! You've been waiting for her for so long, and finally you're with her! And her friends seem like good people,” Hikari said.

Koushiro frowned, thinking about how Yamato was still suspicious of him. There was no doubt in his mind that he would inevitably be betrayed by that man down the road.

“I know how hard it is for you to trust people after everything you've been through,” Hikari acknowledged. “But not everybody you befriend will turn against you. Trust me on this.”

“You're not the one who has clairvoyance...” Koushiro commented.

“My intuition is just as good as that,” Hikari affirmed, smiling.

He smiled as well.

“I need to go back...” Koushiro said. “I need to help Miss Sora get to where she has to be... I can't risk the plan by getting separated from her. And Taichi... I have to find a way to save Taichi...”

“We will find a way to save him,” Hikari assured Koushiro. “Don't burden yourself! There's nothing wrong in asking for help, you know?”

Koushiro didn't say anything. He let go of Hikari's hand, closed his eyes and felt himself fall. When he reopened his eyes, he found Sora, Miyako, Daisuke, Iori and Ken surrounding him. They all had relieved faces, but Miyako also seemed perplexed.

“You really can return from death...” Miyako muttered. “Are you... an actual demon?”

“I'm not a demon,” Koushiro replied.

As he sat up, he thought to himself:

_As a matter of fact, I am the Devil._


End file.
